TURKEY

Over 500 lawyers remanded since coup attempt

Turkish Minister of Justice Abdülhamit Gül said Wednesday that 507 lawyers had been remanded in custody since last year's July 15 defeated coup attempt.

Gül's remarks came during a Parliament session, where he updated deputies about the lawyers and judges prosecuted in the aftermath of the plot.

"There are 3,906 judges and prosecutors who have been dismissed during the investigation process," Gül said.

The minister added that so far, some 100,000 people had applied to the emergency rule commission established by the government on July 12.

The commission, which started working on July 17, paves the way for civil servants to appeal legal actions taken against them under the ongoing post-coup bid state of emergency.

Turkey declared a state of emergency on July 20, 2016, five days after, the coup bid and has so far extended it three times.

According to the Turkish government, Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETÖ) and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gülen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 250 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.